Page 33 of One More Sleepless Night

‘Quite,’ he bit out. ‘It went wrong and in the ensuing mess I nearly lost my sister as well as my wife. Do you really think I’d want to risk that happening again?’

‘Do you really think it would?’

‘I’ve no idea, but it could and I have no intention of putting it to the test. So forget it. Just forget it.’

Nicky slowly tapped her mouth with her index finger as she presumably considered his position. ‘Look, Rafael,’ she said eventually, pulling her shoulders back and fixing him with a disconcertingly probing look. ‘Aren’t you rather over-analysing this? I’m not suggesting we get married or anything. Or even really get involved in a relationship. Heaven forbid, that’s the last thing I want. All I’m suggesting is a kiss.’

Just a kiss? Was she nuts? He let out a sharp laugh. ‘Really? Do you honestly think it would stop there?’

‘Well, OK,’ she said with a grin, ‘if we’re being honest, I’m hoping not. I’m hoping that if the kiss works out well then maybe we can take things further.’

‘Further’s the problem,’ he all but snapped.

‘Why? When is an afternoon of hot sex ever a problem?’

‘When it gets complicated.’

‘It won’t,’ she said firmly. ‘It never does with me. Look, now I’ve got my health back I’m not interested in anything permanent, truly. So neither you nor your relationship with Gaby are under any threat whatsoever from me.’

She walked over to him, smiled up at him, desire blazing in the blue-grey depths of her eyes, and put her hand on his chest. ‘Come on, Rafael,’ she said softly and his vision blurred. ‘Haven’t you wondered what it would be like? A proper kiss. With both of us involved…’

Rafael felt as if he’d been thumped in the gut. Her proximity blew all rational thought from his head and left it empty of everything except harsh clamouring need. His skin beneath her hand burned and his head pounded. He had wondered what it would be like. Endlessly. And that was precisely the trouble.

‘Honestly, it’s just one little kiss,’ she said, her hand sliding higher, curving round his neck and threading through his hair. ‘How can one little kiss hurt?’

Beneath the onslaught of her scent, her warmth and her innate sensuality those cracked and weakened foundations crumbled, and down crashed his defences.

As they lay in smithereens at his feet once more Rafael knew he didn’t stand a chance. That since the moment he’d seen her through the spyhole he’d never stood a chance. He’d tried, but Nicky had battered down every one of his objections with logic and one smouldering smile after another, and now the pressure of wanting her was just too much.

There’d be time for explanations and regret and the chance to figure out what the hell was happening later. But right now he was drowning in need and he couldn’t resist any longer.

With a strange sense that somehow this had been inevitable from the moment they’d met, Rafael gave up and gave in. ‘Come here,’ he muttered, and yanked her into his arms.

TEN

Oh, thank God for that, thought Nicky as Rafael crushed her against him and slammed his mouth down on hers.

She’d known it would be tough to convince him that kissing her again was a good idea, but she’d never imagined it was going to be that hard. Goodness, the man was stubborn.

For a moment back there she’d feared her seduction skills were so rusty he’d never crack because she’d hurled everything she had at him and he’d just stood there firing back all those reasons why he wasn’t going to kiss her, tight-jawed and as implacable as rock.

Well, almost as implacable as rock, she amended, her head beginning to swim as desire swirled around inside her, because she’d finally broken through all that idiotic denial, the not particularly convincing aloofness and all those baffling objections and, boy, was she glad she had.

Gone was the rigidly stoical Rafael of seconds ago, all buttoned up and resistant, and here was the man by the pool. Six feet three inches of wild and uncontrollable passion.

Her lips parted and as he pushed his tongue between them she groaned and sank against him. One of his arms wrapped itself around her waist and he buried his other hand in her hair, in an exact imitation of how he’d kissed her before but with one crucial difference.

And that was her response. There was nothing cold and numb about that this time. His tongue touched hers, and she jerked as if electrocuted. Sparks shot straight through her and her blood began to sizzle. Heat pooled in her pelvis and spread throughout her body like a fever.

As they kissed the heat intensified and her insides began to burn as if a thousand fires had sprung to flame in the pit of her stomach.

Unable to help herself, Nicky moaned. Oh, how she’d missed this. This heady feeling of wanting. Of being wanted. Of the delirious desperation that intense need caused. She’d missed the feeling of drowning in desire, the unstoppable thundering of her heart and the giddy aching of her body.

For the first time in weeks she felt truly alive. Vibrant and on fire, and she pressed herself closer, wrapped her arms tighter, and kissed him back even more fiercely.

After what felt like hours, they broke off and she stared up at Rafael and blinked, fairly reeling at the strength of her reaction to him. His eyes were glittering, dark with desire, his breathing was ragged and she could feel his heart thundering against her. As it seemed he couldn’t move or speak either she thought that perhaps he was as stunned as she was, and the knowledge sent primitive satisfaction surging through her.

‘Well?’ she murmured huskily.

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